Seeds and Plants Imported^

; V taoed July, 1M2. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. INVENTORY I • SEP? OF , SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED^ BY THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION DURING THE PERIOD FROM NOVEMBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1919. (No. 61; Nos. 48427 TO 49123.) GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1922. toiled July, 1922 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. INVENTORY OF SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED BY THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION DURING THE PERIOD FROM NOVEMBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1919. (No. 61; Nos. 48427 TO 49123.) WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1922 CONTENTS. Page. Introductory statement 1 Inventory 7 Index of common and scientific names 81 ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. PLATE I. An African persimmon tree, the inkulu, in full bearing. (Dio- spyros senegalensis Perr., S. P. I. No. 48454) 10 II. A dense thicket of spekboom, in the addo bush, Cape Province. (Portulacaria afra Jacq., S. P. I. No. 48510) 10 III. A natural hedge of the karoo thorn in South Africa. (Acacia horrida (L.)Willd., S. P. I. No. 48518) 20 IV. A new ornamental for the dry southwest. (Burkea africana Hook., S. P. I. No. 48804) 20 V. Kikuyu grass, one of the most valuable forage grasses of Africa. (Pennisetum. clandestinum Hochst, S. P. I. No. 48818) 52 VI. The Morula, a valuable nut tree from northern Transvaal. (Sclerocarya caffra Sond., S. P. I. No. 48823) 52 m INVENTORY OF SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED BY THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN SEED AND PLANT INTRO- DUCTION DURING THE PERIOD FROM NOVEMBER 1 TO DECEMBER 81, 1919 (NO. 61; NOS. 48427 TO 49123). INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT. This inventory describes a wealth of new plants. There are more than 25 new fruits included in it, more than 10 striking new timber trees, 4 street or windbreak trees, 8 new forage plants, 5 new cereals, 2 drug plants, 4 new vegetables, and more than 125 new ornamental trees, shrubs, or plants. The expense of propagating these and of finding people who are interested in growing them is one which only those who see the thousands of seedlings coming up can appreciate. The knowledge that the success of a single one of them may in time pay for all the trouble and expense turns the trouble of taking care of them into a romance of real fascination. The maruka grass (Echinochloa stagnina, No. 48427) of the Phil- ippines for trial on overflowed lands on the Everglades of Florida is worth emphasizing. Mr. J. Burtt Davy collected for us, during a short expedition into the region of the Belgian Kongo and Khodesia, seeds of a remarkable number of interesting economic plants (Nos. 48428 to 48503), among which should be mentioned the knob thorn {Acacia pattens, No. 48428, one of the most valuable hardwood trees of the Transvaal; the mootungulu {Amomum sp., No. 48433), an edible-fruited plant related to the ginger; the kifumbe (Bamhinia reticvlata, No. 48437), the pods of which are used for fodder; the mookasje (Diospyros senegalensis, No. 48454), a persimmon from the Belgian Kongo; the noxa tree (Parinari mobola, No. 48469), a handsome ornamental and useful tree of the Kosacese, whose leaves are dark green above and snowy white below and whose edible fruits, the size of a small peach, are produced in such abundance that at the time of ripening a large proportion of the native population is sustained almost exclusively on them; and various cultivated forms of Uapaca (Nos. 48490 to 48494), a genus of Euphorbiacese, bearing edible fruits which are given native names by the inhabitants of the Kongo. The yama-momo of Japan or yang mei of China (Myrica rubra, No. 48504) is one of the most showy of table fruits, and the fact that specimens of it are growing at Chico, Del Monte, and Berkeley, Calif., 1 2 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. and Brooksville, Fla., makes it appear desirable to arouse more interest in its culture in America. Its slow growth should not prevent its being planted extensively, for it is a handsome evergreen tree worthy of a place on anyone's lawn. The Mexican hawthorn (No. 48507), sent by Mr. F. S. Furnivall, with fruits suited for preserves, may add a fruiting and ornamental tree to our Southern States. When the writer was in Cape Town in 1902, Prof. MacOwan called to his attention the spekboom, an important fodder tree of the karoo, and one of the trees then standing in the gardens was cut down and sent in as cuttings. As a result several trees of this species are now growing in Santa Barbara and San Diego, Calif. If it can be natu- ralized in this portion of California and become wild, as in South Africa, it will add a valuable forage asset to the hillsides of that region. Dr. Shantz has sent in additional material with most interesting data on this important tree (Portulacaria afra, No. 48510). The late Aaron Aaronsohn called attention to Crataegus azarolus. which he had used successfully as a stock for early pears in Palestine. Sr. Pedro Giraud sends in two varieties of it for trial (Nos. 48516 and 48517). Mr. J. B. Norton, who was sent out as an agricultural explorer to South China, was prevented by ill health from carrying out the program outlined for the work there, but, before he was forced to return, he obtained several interesting things, among which are a new Actinidia (No. 48551), related to the yang-tao; the Chinese "olive" {Canarium album, No. 48554) which, contrary to general belief, he found has a pleasant, refreshing flavor; a small water- melon with a thin rind (No. 48558), which he suggests might, after improvement, be adapted for serving as an " individual melon;" a lawn and grazing grass {Eremochloa ophiuroides, No. 48566) for clay soils possibly as far north as the Carolinas; a new species of legume (Apios fortunei, No. 48569), related to our native Apios tuberosa, which may be useful in the hybridization and selection of this promising wild legume; a new, attractive pot ornamental (Tri- chosanthes cucumeroides, No. 48585), which the Chinese train on special frames in pots; an ornamental perennial shrubby Melastoma (M. repens, No. 48718) ; the " tiger grass " (Miscanthus sinensis, No. 48719), from the inflorescence of which excellent brooms are made; and three species of Eubus (Nos. 48739 to 48742), promising for hybridization. Since Bignonias are among the most beautiful of the climbers grown in Florida, a new vine of the same family (Pandorea ricaso- liana, No. 48624), which so experienced a horticulturist as Dr. Pros- NOVEMBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1919. 3 chowsky says is most strikingly beautiful, producing large bunches of pale-rose blooms, is worthy of emphasis. With this inventory begins the description of the collections which were made by Dr. H. L. Shantz, agricultural explorer for this office, during the time in which he was attached to the Smithsonian expedition through South and East Africa. As described in the daily papers of the period, Dr. Shantz made, in company with Dr. Raven, of the Smithsonian Institution, a study of the native agriculture of the eastern part of the Belgian Kongo, German East Africa, Portu- guese East Africa, and British East Africa, starting at Cape Town and coming out at Cairo. The trip took approximately a whole year and resulted in the collection of invaluable information, photo- graphs, and living material bearing upon the customs of the remarkable agricultural people of these portions of Africa and also in the introduction of hundreds of samples of potentially valuable seeds which should make it possible to discover whether any of the crops grown by these remarkable races have value for the American farmer. Dr. Shantz finds the m'tsama melon (Citrullus vulgaris, No. 48761) of the Kalahari Desert the chief water supply of travelers and dwellers in that region and recommends its further trial in Texas and California. He suggests the use of Dimorphotheca spectabilis (No. 48768) for our Great Plains and western desert regions. He found a large-fruited form of Mimusops (M. zeyheri. No. 48777), which was said to be delicious and would, probably grow in southern Texas. He reports Themeda triamdra (No. 48787) as the most dominant grass of the sweet veldt of Africa. He got a collection of cowpeas (Vigna sinensis, -Nos. 48791 to 48793) from Cape Province; a new jujube, which is pro- lific and an attractive ornamental (Ziziphus sp., No. 48796); and a beautiful shade tree (Combretum salidfolium, No. 48809), which grows along all the watercourses of the arid region around Pretoria and the Orange Eiver region and appears very promising for southern Texas and California. Regarding the grass called teff (Eragrostis dbyssinica^ No. 48815), the staple hay crop of the high veldt, Dr. Shantz remarks, " It is the most important plant next to corn in the Transvaal. It should grow from Amarillo, Tex., to Judith Basin, Mont." It requires summer rain and therefore is not adapted for cultivation in the Southwest. Of the kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum, No. 48818) the Union of South Africa Department of Agriculture reports that in wet weather it keeps green all the time, in spite of heavy frosts, and even makes some growth. For soiling dairy cows it is the grass par excellence; it grows almost as rapidly as lucern, yielding four or five cuttings in a season; in food value it is superior to any of our other grasses. 4 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. Rhus lancea (No. 48821) Dr. Shantz believes deserves careful study as a shade and timber tree for the southern Texas region, provided it will stand the frosts there.

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